


The Trail We Blaze

by Rikku



Category: Road to El Dorado (2000)
Genre: Fluff, Multi, Shenanigans, friendship!, pining kinda?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-05-19
Updated: 2012-05-19
Packaged: 2017-11-05 14:51:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/407696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rikku/pseuds/Rikku
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>SUMMARIES ARE HARD, IT IS JUST EL DORADO FANFIC OKAY THERE IS BICKERING WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM MEEEE</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Trail We Blaze

Twang twang twang _gggg_.

Tulio groaned, loudly and theatrically. Miguel shot him a glare and pouted and strummed the guitar again, only the guitar hissed a complaint and slithered off into the bushes. Miguel stared after it and pouted some more.

"Snakes," Tulio said flatly. "Really? Snakes?"

"I can make a guitar from anything!" Miguel cried. The branches he'd pieced the guitar together from collapsed sadly to the ground, and he kicked them into the fire sulkily. He grinned. "Remember that time in Barcelona, with the girdle--"

"I remember Barcelona _very well_ ," Tulio hissed.

"Ha, see," Miguel said, waving his hand in a triumphant sort of way, "you're hissing. _Like a snake_."

"Are you even _trying_ to make sense? There is making sense, and there is Miguel. Occasionally they wave at each other from a distance--"

"Boys, boys," Chel chided smilingly, and draped her arm over Tulio's shoulder. Her long black hair gleamed in the firelight like something long and black and gleamy that gleamed. "Always arguing. Like angry little children."

"I take offence at that," Tulio said, but he didn't look offended. He was wearing his Chel-face, which (Miguel thought) made him look like an idiot: all lowered eyelids and dazed smiles. Ridiculous. "Miguel's the childish one."

"You're the greedy one," Miguel said irritably, blond hair bouncing as he slouched back.

"Greed is a … very … grown-up emotion," Tulio said. "That adults have. Adult emotion."

"I know some more adult emotions," Chel purred, snuggling closer to him. He gave the dazed stupid grin that he always did when she did that. Argh.

"Miguel," he said loftily, "go … fetch water."

"Water," Miguel said flatly.

"If we are to camp, we need water. Very … very important for camping."

Miguel looked at the water pot, which was still half full, and then looked at Tulio.

"Off you go," Chel told him, waving her hand, and she stroked Tulio's face. "Shoo."

"Mmmmmgahrglemm," Tulio murmured.

Miguel snatched up the water pot and stormed off into the bushes, whistling to Altivo.

Once they were a decent distance away, he started talking. "It's the hair," he decided, slashing furiously at some dangling vines. Altivo made a quizzical sort of noise, so Miguel explained, "Chel's hair. She has these _acres_ of long beautiful hair. It's why he likes her better."

Altivo did not look convinced by this.

"Don't look at me like that," Miguel cried, "you wouldn't know, you have _lots_ of …"

He emerged into the open, blinking, and stared. In front of them was a massive rushing river, long and deep and broad.

"… hair," he said weakly.

Altivo took a few steps forward and dipped one hoof elegantly into the river. He snorted through his nose and ran back again rapidly. The message was clear: _really, really fast river. Do not cross_.

"Well," Miguel declared brightly, "there's _no_ way Tulio can say I didn't find water, eh?"

Altivo snorted at him.

*

The next morning the four of them stood on the bank and stared across.

"We could skirt it," Chel suggested.

"Probably it goes on _forever_. Until the end of the world," Tulio said, and moved his finger in a little circle. "And then loops around."

"Oh, come on," Miguel said, pinching his cheek, "why the long faces? We've conquered much mightier foes!"

"It isn't a foe," Tulio said. "It's a massive impassable river."

"Exactly! Nothing we can't handle! C'mooon, Tulio. Put that planning brain of yours to use."

Tulio rolled his eyes, but nodded and crouched down. He grabbed a few sticks and placed them on the ground. "Okay. This is us."

"Right, right," Miguel said intently, crouching beside him and peering over his shoulder.

Tulio waved his hand at the river. "And that's the river - oh."

His hand had sent the sticks rolling. They bounced down the bank, fell into the water and were instantly swept away downstream, very very fast.

The four of them stared at the sticks, which were rapidly dwindling into the distance.

"Well, I'd say that covers everything," Tulio said.

"Tulio, dear," Miguel said, staring at the sticks and wincing as they were snapped up by a massive toothy fish, "I must admit that I do _not_ have my normal amount of confidence in this - _particular_ plan."

"Nonsense. It's a very good plan," Chel said defensively, and then added, in an undertone, "If we want to drown."

Tulio put his face in his hands. "We are going to _die_ ," he said. "Horribly. Horrible painful deaths of _death_."

Miguel happened to glance upstream, and his eyes widened. He stood up and nudged Tulio with his foot. "Tulio."

"And we will be all bloated and bilious and I'll never get to show Chel Spain," Tulio moaned. Chel looked touched by this.

"Tulio!"

"And we'll never get to try out that new dice trick," Tulio said gloomily. "Because we will be _dead_."

" _Tulio_."

"And I will never find out exactly what happened with that girl in Barcelona!" Tulio cried.

"Tuliooooo …"

"I wouldn't bother," Chel informed Miguel, looking exasperated. "When he gets like this. Soon he'll start talking about every single piece of gold he's let slip through his fingers. Best just to wait."

Miguel shot her a triumphant grin and said, "Shows what you know. Altivo!" The horse whinnied curiously, and Miguel swung himself up onto his back and said, "Rear, will you?"

Altivo obediently reared, standing on his back hooves and waving his shiny front hooves in the air.

"Look, Tulio," Miguel called, " _gold_!"

Tulio's eyes snapped open and he stared intently at the horse's hooves. "And we will get eaten by crocodiles and gold?" he said. "Gold gold gold? _Gold_!" He sprung to his feet and sprang at the horse, and Altivo thumped to the ground. Miguel steered him to the side and they cantered upstream, Tulio chasing after them, crying, " _Gold_!" with a mildly deranged look in his eyes.

"Gold gold gold …" Tulio muttered grimly under his breath, and then he said, in surprise, "Bridge?"

Miguel smirked smugly and looked proudly at the bridge he had glimpsed. It was the same colour as the river, which was a deceptive sort of colour for a bridge to be, but it was sturdy and solid and would get them across easily. Though there was a dodgy bit in the middle. But he was trying not to notice that.

Tulio reached out and patted his leg, still staring at the bridge. "Miguel," he said, "when we get to Spain I will buy you many many thousands of guitars."

Ha.

**Author's Note:**

> help how do i change scenes how do i pov shift help


End file.
